12 Rounds

The movie has a good idea and some really seat-gripping excitement. It reminds me of Die Hard with a Vengeance but even more exciting. The plot is good with enough twists to keep everyone's interests.

I have only one negative thing to say...and this is that I hate the type of camera work in this movie. It seems to be the latest rage in movies...to have jerky-action shots. Personally I think it looks amateurish and makes the watcher slightly nauseous. What a shame to do that to such an exciting film.

Even with that type of photography, I would still recommend this film and have done so. I had never seen any advertising for this film and would not have gone to see it had I not looked up a synopsis of it.

If you can just avoid asking "how?" you might enjoy this film as an exciting collection of action scenes. The villain does bad things, and the hero John Cena manages to save the day (as expected). Reality and logic are overlooked when they are in conflict with a good action scene. The fact that the action in this film could never, never ever happen is beside the point.

Very little time is spent on character development, since all you need to know is who the villain is. You find this out within a minute or two, and you can then switch off your brain for the rest of the film.

This film is immune to criticism. John Cena does not have any big acting scenes, and might even be capable of passable acting. However, he's not called upon to do much acting. His execution of the stunts and action scenes is amazing.

How can anyone complain about an illogical plot when the film was produced by the WWE and stars a professional wrestler? The movie was filmed entirely in New Orleans,and makes terrific use of dozens of locations. I probably gave it an extra point or two for this.

The scene with the "runaway streetcar" has got to be an in-joke, because the "real" Canal Street streetcar cannot travel more than a half-block at a time at a very, very slow pace. It is frequently blocked by vehicles stopped across its tracks. The havoc (if not revenge) wreaked on vehicular traffic by this runaway streetcar has got to bring delight to any local streetcar rider.

John Cena, who should stick to the wrestling ring, does in 12 ROUNDS what boils down to a reprise of his character from THE MARINE. The plot is also the same, which has Cena once again chasing after his kidnapped wife. The actress playing the wife even looks like the wife from THE MARINE. The only difference is this time, Cena must match wits with an IRA type who puts Cena through a series of improbable tasks to save her. The film is of the shaky camera and CGI variety, and it frankly isn't as heart-pounding as THE MARINE. This is partly because we've seen it all before, and because the tasks Cena must undertake are completely unbelievable. Plus the acting is sub par. The flick also is highly derivative of past flicks like DIE HARD, PHONE BOOTH, DIRTY HARRY, CELL PHONE and LETHAL WEAPON, among others.

If you're going to watch this movie, it will be to see vehicles crash into other vehicles and cause lots of damage. This movie does that very well. It will also be for the nonstop excitement in a number of scenes, including the thrilling runaway streetcar. And the suspense of wondering if Det. Fisher can complete each challenge in time, breaking all the rules along the way. He has so many challenges and each one just leads to another one, equally impossible.

Sure, we've seen this sort of thing before, but if I enjoy the formula, so what?

But this movie isn't without problems. Aidan Gillen didn't quite reach the point of being deliciously evil, though the potential was there and he achieved what I hoped for in a few scenes.

And some of the writing was pretty bad. Cops are supposed to be smarter than this. FBI agents are supposed to be smarter too. One of the movie's final scenes had some of the most pathetic writing imaginable. But that's just the dialogue. The action in that scene was great.

I was disappointed to see Steve Harris from the critically acclaimed "Awake" in this. He didn't add much. And by the way, that's not him asleep in that streetcar. I couldn't understand what he was doing there, given the urgency of the situation.

With all the killing that takes place, the violence isn't graphic. You know people die, but you don't see the blood.

I particularly liked scenes with Danny and Molly together when not trying to stay alive. One highlight is Molly trying to repair the plumbing and I'm not talking about her mechanical skills. These scenes had some funny lines, and as terrible as certain events were, the movie's last line was really funny.

It was ... interesting.

Gripping, original action movie with the wrestler John Cena desperately trying to find the means avoid his girlfriend to be murdered . Exciting screenplay that dispenses absurd excitement as well as amusement . Excellent thriller full of intrigue and tense, this is a fast-paced, stylized action-suspense film. The tension of this picture keeps snowballing as the clock ticks ever close for killing his lover .Detective Danny Fisher (John Cena) discovers his love interest (Ashley Scott) has been abducted by a ex-con (Aidan Gillen) tied to Fisher's past, and he'll have to successfully complete 12 challenges in order to secure her safe release. The tale appears to unfold in real time as the many stirring and intense scenes will verify. Most unusual is the device of having the victim play desperado and hunt the killer, and saving his girlfriend , as time runs out.

This mindless, interesting and ingenious film is packed with thrills, suspense, tension and lots of interminable action. Enjoyable battle of wits between two main characters, Cena and Gillen , based on risked circumstances work out pretty well . Witty argument that dispenses excitement as well as entertainment . Casting is frankly well, John Cena is fine as tormented and intrepid cop , Aidan Gillen steals the show and takes honors as psychopath who attempts to turn the tables on the victim before he can chase him and a gorgeous Ashley Scott . Plus, a good secondary cast, such as Brian White as his best friend , Steve Harris as FBI agent and Nick Gomez among them. Adequate musical score accompanying the action by Trevor Ravin and inventively photographed , using Steadicam or hand-held camera by by David Boyd reflecting splendidly New Orleans streets .The motion picture is professionally directed by Renny Harlin , he's expert on action genre such as ¨ Cliffhunger , Die hard 2 , Deep blue sea , Driven , Long kiss goodnight¨ and many others . Rating : acceptable and passable thriller movie . The picture will appeal to frenetic action buffs .